THRIVE: My Story, Updated (2024)

My first book’s account of my story stopped in 2018. Here is my full story, updated through early 2024!

If you already read the first part and are looking for what happened after I wrote the first book, if you scroll about halfway down this page it will pick up from there…

Youth and Adolescence

 

I grew up in Anchorage, Alaska. I realize that as a white woman in a middle-class family with supportive parents, from the get-go I already had many factors that created a reality that provided greater ease for my healing—whether it was the ability to pursue different (sometimes expensive) treatment types, have a financial fallback for periods without work, or the ability to move houses often. I am very cognizant of these angles and how they have impacted my story.

 

In terms of my physical journey, what was consistent especially from ages 0-35 of my life was inflammation and now, looking back, a high toxic burden and gut issues. It was more subtle when I was a kid. I had allergies to things like chocolate and different medications. One of my earliest memories is the chronic constipation that plagued me for most of my life. I had hives and skin issues and was diagnosed with chronic urticaria and put on daily antihistamines at a young age. I had asthma and was allergic to all sorts of animals, pollens, dust, etc. I had a painful circulatory issue called Raynaud’s that impacted me from a young age on. I had some weird neurological tics and things that impacted me socially and was taken to the doctor because I had a season where I was blinking too forcefully. I was a swimmer growing up and seemed to have constant ear and sinus infections and took tons of antibiotics.

 

I was a perfectionist and as I got to junior high and high school I struggled with things like brain fog, feeling hyper-focused or unable to focus at all. I was hard on myself and tried to mask my difficulties to meet expectations for performance I felt from family and culture, but I tended to perseverate on things, beat myself up and had a hard time relaxing. I experienced fluctuations in anxiety and depression and began cutting myself in a season of greater emotional overwhelm and physical inflammation.

 

Near the end of high school, I became more aware of my empathic intuitive gifts and started to realize that they had been there all along, but I shut them down because I was insecure and felt they were taboo in the religious culture I was raised in.

 

I began to develop frequent bone fractures- some of them made sense, like a soccer ball to the nose, but others—like stress fractures to the metatarsals of both feet—didn’t quite add up. It wasn’t until about 20 years later that we discovered a cause for my bone density and calcium issues- but more on this later. I had really heavy periods and developed pretty severe anemia and was put on the pill as a teenager.

 

In my teenage years I started having emergency room trips and anaphylaxis to foods like shellfish and it seemed I was dairy intolerant. Around the age of 18, I began experiencing what I called abdominal “attacks” of symptoms, characterized by severe pain that necessitated curling up in the fetal position and fasting from all food or beverages for hours to 4 to 7 days. With these attacks I had severe abdominal distention that wasn’t quite swelling but more like a third-spacing phenomenon. Sometimes other areas like my face, throat or extremities would be affected. This was very distinct from the allergic reactions and anaphylaxis I would experience. They were occasionally triggered by lack of sleep, but as a general pattern they occurred with no rhyme or reason. Countless years of food diaries and different, often extreme, elimination diets and eating plans showed no apparent dietary trend in my severe abdominal pain and swelling episodes.

 

About 17 years later this was diagnosed as hereditary angioedema, and I read that the abdominal area pain in these attacks was compared to that of childbirth in the scientific literature. I don’t have kids yet so I can’t attest to that part, but they were severely disabling when they occurred. Doctors just told me I had irritable bowel syndrome at the time.

 

College Years

 

Around that time, I also was in a car accident that impacted my spine and neck in particular, and I started to notice chronically swollen lymph nodes. Somehow, I still was able to forge on and continue to swim and run competitively on teams. In college, I swam for the University of Utah and studied exercise and sport science. I really began to feel like I was in survival mode and was barely getting through the academic and athletic demands, but I still approached it from a place of stuffing symptoms down and pushing through. At the time I didn’t really think much about chlorine or the other chemicals I was inhaling and submersing myself in, often for 4 hours a day, though now I think that really added to my inflammation.

 

In college I had a lot of urinary tract infections and the fatigue and the brain fog got more intense. I also had anaphylaxis to a yellowjacket sting and had swelling for about a year after the sting. I proceeded to get allergy tested and eventually (many years later) underwent allergy shots for the 7 types of Hymenoptera venom I was allergic too. I had anaphylaxis to the bee venom allergy shots even at micro doses to the point where I had to stop. To this day my arm still swells up regularly where I used to get those shots.

 

I had a chronically low blood pressure and began to experience severe adrenaline rushes, lightheadedness, near fainting and insomnia. I also had several EKG’s and heart workups in my early 20’s for heart palpitations and what was later diagnosed as POTS. My labs started to show glucose and cholesterol and liver enzyme abnormalities. I had cold and heat intolerance and strange reactions to medications and more foods.

 

When I was 20, I had a low back injury that impacted the nerves in my right leg that resulted in steroid injections and talk of surgery, and I started reacting to pain medications, contrast injections for imaging and medical procedures. Fortunately, I was able to heal with physical therapy and that later inspired me to become a physical therapist.

 

I continued to struggle with ear and sinus infections in college, and had one especially bad one that resulted in a ruptured eardrum while on a flight. I also struggled with several bouts of pneumonia that left me sidelined and weakened for many months. I had some dental issues and severe gum recession and ended up getting gum a grafting procedure done at the age of 22.

 

Graduate School Years

 

After college I went to physical therapy school in Denver, Colorado and began to notice more intense neurological symptoms. This was also a period of higher life stress and lack of sleep.  I had extensive testing and imaging and one neurologist told me I had multiple sclerosis. I got a second opinion because there was a weird vibe with the first one, and the new one said he didn’t think that my imaging met all of the criteria. It was very confusing.

 

I began to have issues with shoulder subluxations and frequent ankle sprains, as well as continued low back and neck issues and continued bone fractures. I fractured my tailbone from a cliff jump into a river and endured many months sitting on an inflatable donut. I had TMJ issues, IT band and knee meniscal issues, plantar fasciitis, and patellar, Achilles and elbow tendon issues that would come and go. I continued to get stress fractures and regular fractures from seemingly gentle activity. At one point I had urinary incontinence and an emergency room visit to rule out cauda equina. And whenever my neck would get worked on in labs at PT school, I’d end up having some pretty severe systemic issues going on, but at that point I was relatively unaware of hypermobility spectrum disorders or the full implications of craniocervical instability (CCI).

 

I began to notice brittle nails, lines on my nails, scalloping and a white coating on my tongue, slow wound healing and hair loss that varied from mild to clumps. I had episodes of vertigo and BPPV. My gut stuff and fatigue were getting worse. I had night sweats and worsening insomnia and moments of feeling really low or else manic. The mental struggles seemed to have a “chemical” feeling and they came and went without reason. Sometimes I would have what felt like were panic attacks accompanied by dysautonomia symptoms in the middle of a grad school class. I saw countless doctors who ruled out everything from thyroid issues to mono to cancer. I began to notice more and more flushing and low-grade fevers for no reason. I had eye issues and developed an “allergy” to my contact lenses. I also had a carbon monoxide poisoning from a gas leak that definitely made my health plummet even more. It took everything I had to complete my rigorous grad school program.

 

One Year in Peru (2010-2011)

 

After grad school I began my career as a PT volunteering with a nonprofit in Peru for a year. It was one of the most beautiful experiences of my life and I still consider Peru a second home. However, between bacterial issues and parasites and air quality, I ended up quite a bit sicker after that and also developed new food intolerances. I experienced some traumatic events while living in Peru related to one kidnapping, one house explosion and some dog attacks that left my autonomic nervous system in a frenzy. I also witnessed separate traumas of my boss and host family members while I was there. There were flea and beg bug issues that also seemed to amp things up.

 

Once back in the US in my late 20’s, I moved back to my college town of Salt Lake City, Utah. My GI issues were unbearable and I returned to mainstream medicine to try and get answers. I was diagnosed with celiac disease and was told that a gluten free diet would help everything (it did not). IgE allergy testing was very unhelpful and claimed I was allergic to 32 foods- mostly my “safe” foods. I was having a lot of sinus and respiratory issues, particularly in winter when the inversion and air quality rivaled that of places like Tokyo and Hong Kong.

 

I plugged along at an outpatient orthopedic physical therapy clinic and although I adored my coworkers and patients, I couldn’t shake the feeling that I wasn’t doing what I was supposed to for my career. At the time, I chalked it up to burnout and the fatigue and vast array of symptoms that left me feeling in survival mode on a daily basis. Yet I continued to exercise. In some ways, pain that I could control felt calming amid so many things that felt out of my hands.

 

My 30’s

 

At age 30, I felt I could no longer continue the way I was, and decided to take some time off work and travel. I did a big international trip to Australia, New Zealand, Indonesia and Thailand while I was training for the Boston marathon. The trip was full of awe-inspiring moments, and my body did pretty well with the travel. However, near the end, I was attacked by a monkey and ended up needing a series of rabies vaccines which caused a massive storm of inflammation in my body. The vaccinations that had a profound impact on my Boston Marathon race experience and took years to recover from.

 

After the marathon, I moved back to Alaska and that same year I also had a severe reaction to a flu shot that I had to get for work, which led me to the diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis (which I started pharmacological treatment for, but the diagnosis was eventually revoked about 6 months later-seeing a trend?!) After that they just called it a mixed connective tissue disorder. I also had a large and concerning ovarian cyst at this time, and one ER visit for symptoms of meningitis. I had a spinal tap and my labs were way off but they couldn’t figure out the cause.

 

Facial nerve pain, bladder pain, throat hoarseness, fevers, fatigue, brain fog, abdominal pain, night sweats, sleep issues, and gallbladder-type referral pain were all pretty intense in my early 30s. I was diagnosed with median arcuate ligament syndrome (often known as MALS). I also had a laparoscopy with cystoscopy procedure to rule out endometriosis and interstitial cystitis. My immune system seemed to fluctuate between been super run down/immunocompromised or else on high alert and never getting sick.

 

I was diagnosed with ADHD and also felt I was somewhere on the autism spectrum, though I did a huge deal of masking. I experienced countless doctors who told me it was in my head. I had numerous doctors say it was all stress. This also made me question myself and I felt gaslit from all angles. Still, I remained a bit fake with family and friends because I was so ashamed that I was going to great lengths to figure this out and was not getting any “real” or socially accepted answers. I put up a lot of walls and tried to put a smile on my face in public but found myself in extreme lows when I was alone. Through these years I was still working as a PT but kept cutting back on hours at work until I felt I could no longer continue working in the clinic or as a swimming coach. At that point I had opened up a paddleboarding company on the side and decided to just focus on that.

 

I was still desperate for answers and when I was 33, I was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease and started treatment for that (but, like so many other labels, repeat testing down the road and another opinion from a different MD said that I didn’t have Crohn’s). Then I relocated to Washington state and that is where I really started to get answers about my health. Unfortunately, Washington is very moldy and my anaphylaxis and dysautonomia issues and migraines became quite severe while I was there. I had severe adrenaline dumps at night accompanied by neuropathy pain. I was having more skin flushing, restless legs, feeling of being hungover in spite of not drinking, ringing in the ears, eczema, heartburn, and severe grogginess that bordered on narcolepsy.

 

Finally, I got some helpful information: I was told by a functional medicine practitioner that I had adrenal fatigue and histamine intolerance while led me down the path to get diagnosed with MCAS, hEDS, POTS, SIBO, parasites, chronic bacterial issues, Lyme disease and co-infections, and hereditary angioedema. I began to dive more into addressing mold which was profoundly helpful—but also very painful in terms of all the times I moved and started over with my belongings. Mold was a massive driver of inflammation in my system and looking back, I’d had many exposures over the course of my life.

 

I also painstakingly walked away from the paddleboarding company I’d built with a friend. My parents graciously opened their doors to me since I could no longer work, and I went down to Arizona to work with a natural doctor who hooked me up to IVs for about 9 months. It was there where I had more clarity on labs that identified factors like Epstein-Barr virus, multiple heavy metal toxicities, hormonal abnormalities. adrenal issues, excess inflammatory markers, and Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. I began to work more on spiritual, mental and emotional healing and got curious about trying more natural medicine modalities.

 

I began to connect some of my symptoms to craniocervical instability, Chiari malformation, intracranial pressure issues, and a cerebrospinal fluid leak but found that addressing systemic inflammation seemed to help with conservative management of these concerns. While I was getting more answers, I was still having some pretty intense symptoms, but I started to notice that I would have good days and more moments of hope and reprieve. I ended up moving again, this time to Colorado, where I had some more mold and chemical exposures before settling into housing that seemed to be healthier.

 

I began to think about working again and attended a training for something called CranioBiotic Technique (CBT) which really opened up my world in terms of natural holistic medicine and autonomic response muscle testing. Subsequent evaluation(s) indicated that my immune system was still struggling to resolve health stressors including clostridium difficile, strep, staph, toxoplasmosis, Epstein-Barr virus, parasites, SIBO, Lyme disease and its coinfections, mycoplasma pneumonia, aspergillus, candida, protozoal infections, borrelia, and other viruses.

 

Dr. Smith kindly took me on a patient and I responded well to Lyme Stop treatments with him in Idaho. I began to be able to exercise more again, work more, and even do more international travel. I got curious about sound healing and found the Safe & Sound Protocol to be helpful. I had a several year span where I was gently working on detox and drainage and noticing slow improvements, but I was still very much in a place of having an identity with my diagnoses and feeling stuck in some ways. It was around this time that I published my first book entitled “Mast Cells United.”

 

When all was said and done, when I published that book, I estimated that I’d seen over 100 specialists over nearly 18 years, including gastroenterologists, ENTs, neurologists, rheumatologists, nutritionists, speech therapists, physical therapists, internal medicine doctors, urologists, endocrinologists, cardiologists, emergency medicine practitioners, gynecologists, orthopedic doctors and surgeons, pulmonologists, dermatologists, ophthalmologists, asthma specialists, psychiatrists, psychologists, allergy/immunology specialists, family medicine doctors, naturopaths, functional medicine doctors, infectious disease/parasite specialists, and one unidentified and questionable specialist who performed a rectal exam in Peru (ha!). I was still at that point sort of with one foot in and one foot out of mainstream medicine. My inner knowing was strong that what remained of my symptoms was fully reversible if I continued to work on the root issues.

 

Post “Mast Cells United” Era

 

I got a new job that was more public health focused at a university in Denver and we moved there, but the university was so moldy that I quickly began having severe symptoms including signs of a stroke. Interestingly, it was the same university (and building) where I spent 3 years studying to get my doctorate from 2007-2010 (another season where health struggles increased). Human resources actually tested for mold and found it (air samples were atrocious, so I can only imagine what dust testing would have showed!) They set up a meeting to tell me that they treated the mold with bleach and that I was safe to return to working on campus. I asked if I could work from a newer building on campus and was denied. They gave me an ultimatum to either work in that same office or leave, and I sadly had to walk away. It was so frustrating to deal with the physical and mental implications of this experience, but thankfully by then I had the tools and knew what to do to help my system recover faster.

 

I kept trying to change my career to something non-medical, and had a few years of changing jobs and even cities, but the universe kept pulling me back. Eventually I decided to embrace my calling to being a healer wholeheartedly and opened up my business, Origin Wellness. I spent a year getting certified in functional medicine and went on to study nutrition and energy medicine. For the first time in my life, I felt like I was following my higher purpose for my career and I had great joy in this new approach to healthcare. I never felt like physical therapy was my mission or passion, so it was exciting to finally feel that way about something. I continued to heal and learned so much alongside my patients.

 

I opened my business right at the start of the pandemic and promptly came down with covid symptoms. That was definitely a setback, but by that winter I felt fully back to my baseline again, and in the process I learned a lot of gems for helping people following that type of illness. Unfortunately, the new place we were renting had a secret roof leak and I was still in mold exposure, which I believe was part of what was going on with my so-called long covid symptoms.

 

So, we started over and moved again. In the new place, I continued to see more health improvements—albeit slowly—and had the energy to see patients via telehealth and once a week in clinic, and start up a part-time teaching job at a local university. I also worked on my second book, “The Trifecta Passport,” which was released in 2021.

 

The Parathyroid Connection

 

That winter, at the age of 37, I stumbled across a social media post about primary hyperparathyroidism (PHPT), and something clicked for me. Between my 18 bone fractures and my chronically elevated calcium levels on blood work, plus other symptoms and some recent concerns about kidney stones, I definitely had the hallmark signs of this condition. I had more labs drawn to confirm the connection between serum PTH and calcium, and then had a CT scan which showed a parathyroid tumor (known as an adenoma). I had an anaphylactic reaction to the imaging contrast and they whisked me promptly to the ER, but was able to bounce back relatively well in time for surgery.

 

Functionally, the parathyroid itself has nothing to do with the thyroid, aside from the fact that it’s located on the back of the thyroid.  PHPT causes tumors called adenomas to grow on the parathyroid glands. They are usually benign but cause elevated blood calcium/hormones which can lead to issues with osteoporosis, heart attacks, kidney stones, stroke, etc. and a reduced life expectancy.

 

Even with a decade of blood work indicating I had this condition, my primary care provider dismissed my labs, so I self-referred to a specialist who immediately recommended surgery (the only cure). I was still skeptical, so I got an expert second opinion before moving forward. The CT only showed one tumor, but when they did surgery, they found that all 4 of my glands had issues (hyperplasia), so they removed all except part of one.

 

They don’t know what causes the adenomas, but some theorize that toxins play a role. Prior to surgery, I’d done years of functional/natural medicine work for my health but still felt that something was missing.

 

After surgery, I noticed some incredible changes in things such as:

• the “chemical” anxiety feeling I’ve had for decades went away
• I was able to run without bone pain
• Fatigue and brain fog improved
• Less sensitive to light and noise. For the first time in my life, I really felt and appreciated music profoundly!
• I was having food impaction and choking issues, and after surgery they stopped
• Cold intolerance has improved
• Less issues with chemicals/odor sensitivities
• Easier comprehension of Spanish language
• Improvements in other symptoms like constipation, insomnia, muscle pain, hair loss, urinary symptoms, irritability, not feeling like myself, and kidney stones

 

Our mainstream system tends to cut out organs instead of looking for the root issue of why it’s inflamed, and I now harbor some concerns about my decision to treat PHPT in this manner. I later found studies that connected mycotoxin exposure to parathyroid adenomas. I am not sure if continuing to treat mold and other toxins would have reversed the tumors, but I do know that this surgical procedure was a pivotal moment in my healing journey where my baseline of inflammation really shifted for the better.

 

Big Life Changes

 

The week prior to surgery, my partner at the time who I was living with decided to end our 5+ year relationship. We had known each other since we were teenagers. The word devastation doesn’t begin to cover the feelings surrounding the breakup. I truly thought of him as a life partner. He had patiently supported me through so many low moments of this healing journey and I definitely spiraled into self-blame and rock bottom moments for a while.

 

However, once the pain cleared, I began to understand that we were both better off going our separate ways. In fact, my health seemed to really do well once I was single again. It was very eye-opening and it helped me dive more into the understanding of how profoundly those subtle energetic differences impact my body as an empath.

 

Following surgery, I had a small amount of time to pack up and move out, and I decided to travel and put things in storage for a while until I figured out what was next. I enjoyed a summer seeing family in Alaska and Vermont and visiting Florida with friends, and knew that I had zero desire to stay in Colorado. That fall my teaching job (which had been mostly remote) required me to be back on (a different, but moldy) campus, so I resigned, and it quickly became clear that my next move was supposed to be international. I had held onto this dream of living in Latin America again and learning how to surf, and now that I was working 100% remotely, I decided to go for it.

 

With a backpack and a one-way ticket, I landed in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico in the fall of 2021. I chose Mexico because of proximity to family (just a 2-hour flight from my parents!) and the fact that things were pretty relaxed around travel considerations for the pandemic. I didn’t know anyone there and had randomly, eyes closed, pointed my finger on the map and landed on a little surfing fishing town about an hour from there. I figured I would make that home base for about a month to get a feel for my surroundings before figuring out where to live.

 

Mexico Bliss

 

Well, 2.5 years later, I’m still in the same community—and loving it! I’ve always wanted to live in a small community, and this is my first time doing so. There are some resorts nearby but I live on the “local” side of town which is decidedly a little rough around the edges and charming all at once. This community is walking distance (or a max drive or boat ride of under 15 minutes) away from 8 great surf spots. There is something very special about this place for me, on an energetic level. As I pondered my geography months after my arrival, it came to my attention that the location of this town lined up exactly with my birth chart at the exact moment (day, month, year, minute) that I was born. There was definitely something bigger than me at play that drew me to this community and helped me feel so at home.

 

When I arrived in Mexico, I was still somewhat hypervigilant about random things. It didn’t take long for a little bit of what I term the “Mexico magico” to kick in. The culture is laid back, slow and joyfully savors the little things. Everyone is so friendly and there’s an awesome sense of community here that I didn’t realize had been missing for me. Everything happened outdoors, and the memories of the pandemic began to fade very quickly for me. It very much felt like “what pandemic?” in everyday life, and only the gas stations required people to mask up when I first arrived.

 

Grounding my system in the ocean each day certainly played a huge role too, and I found myself able to identify and shed layers of things that no longer served me, little by little. I found I could be around smokers and many odors and chemicals without issues. I originally was whole food plant based (vegan) when I arrived, but I began to explore bring back in eggs, meat, corn and dairy—mainly out of what felt like necessity, at first, if I wanted to eat out, but later felt that I needed more animal products. I had two episodes of food-borne bacterial gut issues in my first few months, but after that, my body seemed to adapt really well.

 

In my first week, I met a local surf instructor named Henry and we grew to become fast friends. He took me hiking up the local “mountain,” gave me surfing lessons and invited me to his twice-weekly Latin dance classes. I crossed paths with so many incredible people from day one, both expats and locals, and was amazed by all of the synchronicities happening around me. A month later I hosted a Friendsgiving dinner on a rooftop palapa and marveled at how much had shifted in my world that year.

 

My body felt so much better in general on a daily basis. I was sleeping better than I had in years. I felt less chaos from the energy of others around me and was better able to maintain my energetic boundaries. With the absence of 5g and living on a peninsula that juts out (surrounded by water on 3 sides), I felt my EMF exposure was reduced dramatically. I was disconnecting from technology often and learned to just flow with my days. I often left my phone at home to go surfing and would run into friends there and end up on some adventure for the rest of the day with them after.

 

I certainly had some surfing injuries and mishaps early on. I fractured two ribs with my surfboard, injured my wrist and had to remove many sea urchins from my feet and hands. However, I also noticed that as I got stronger with surfing, I felt like my craniocervical instability issues lessened dramatically. And surfing checked all of the boxes, all at once—a meditative state, a workout, often entailed a hike through the jungle to get to the spot, the healing power of water, nature encounters (sea turtles, whales, etc.), social connections/friendships, patience and flow, laughter (mostly at myself, haha). It was healing me and helping bring to the surface further areas for growth, all at once.

 

Deeper Inner Work

 

With the spaciousness around me coupled with this greater inner peace, I began to dive deeper into themes around healing from the breakup and healing wounds from my childhood and my traumas. In the past I had gobbled up books and podcasts and tried to force the healing to occur, and now, with a new approach, I was simply being still and present and seeing what came up.

 

I had several sessions with a gifted spiritual coach who helped me along the way. For my first homework, she had me try the ten-minute challenge—ten minutes of stillness per day. No phone, no music, no distractions—sitting in silence, and allowing things to surface at their own pace. I was surprised with how hard this was for me!

 

For so long I was embedded in grind culture, and for the first time I gave myself permission to fully and truly rest. I arrived to Mexico with the idea to finish a book project I had in mind, and felt like hustling to make ends meet had been what I had known for so many years, but I quickly decided to let that go. With a lower cost of living, I had less financial stress and more ability to pace myself.

 

Things also clicked into place with my business, and I had a steady bunch of telehealth patients with a 9-month wait list. And patients were improving! I felt so lucky to be a part of their journeys and to learn alongside them. I felt a great sense of balance between my personal and professional life, perhaps for the first time ever.

 

This season also allowed me to really examine my limiting beliefs. I began to tap into what I felt was more of my authentic self, and reflected on themes surrounding my identity, body image, sensuality, community, intuition, shame, boundaries, hypervigilance and safety, control, societal expectations for marriage and kids, faith, self-love, ceremonies, financial beliefs, creativity and so much more. Perhaps this was also part of aging, but I felt I no longer cared what others thought. That inner child who was all about people-pleasing was slowly fading away. I still had a lot of work to do, particularly when it came to romantic relationships, but I was embracing it all with open arms.

 

Interestingly, I felt that as I was embracing these concepts and committed to this inner work, I attracted deeper connections and more like-minded people, and also had less tolerance to spending time with people who weren’t aligned or who drained my energy.

 

My boundaries improved, and interestingly, with that, came a series of challenges to them, in the form of friendships or men who wanted relationships who were the very definition of what I wanted to avoid. It felt like I was being tested in some ways, and sometimes I did not pass the test, or it took me awhile to see through the façade or break my old patterns. However, I learned a ton in the process. There were a lot of things happening energetically, some beautiful and some puzzling, and I was fascinated by all of it.

 

Travel Adventures

 

Travel is one of my biggest passions and everything felt like a new adventure in Mexico. I picked up my Spanish again pretty quickly and felt very much at ease. I enjoyed boating across the bay to tiny jungle towns for long weekends, surfing road trips with friends, and day trips to places like Sayulita and San Pancho. I began to attend local Temazcal ceremonies, which are traditional Mexican sweat lodge experiences that involve hot rocks and water/steam, herbs and music. I got curious about microdosing psilocybin and found that to be incredibly therapeutic and insightful. I became a regular at the Bachata and Salsa classes each week and enjoyed regular beach bonfires with friends. I explored cacao ceremonies and Tibetan bowl sound healing. I bought a mountain bike to get around town and tried to surf as much as possible in my spare time.

 

That spring, I explored Mexico City and then did a solo trip to El Salvador and had the trip of lifetime, surfing and climbing volcanoes and making new friends (and eating pupusas). Coming off several years of pandemic, it was so refreshing to be able to do so again. I had one incident where I was stung by a yellowjacket while surfing, but luckily, my reaction was not as severe as it had been in the past.

 

During my time in Mexico City, I was dating a guy there and we did a side trip to a historic hacienda that had been in his family for a very long time. For three days we stayed in a place that was beautiful but overwhelmingly moldy, and I was fine. I took some extra binders and detox support the week after, but it didn’t even feel like a blip on the radar. It felt like my body was continuing to undo the layers of inflammation that had built up over time.

 

I had taken a break from detox work with all of the travel that year, and in 2022 I decided to start it up again more intentionally. I was able to tolerate more mold binding than I had previously and was continuing to notice changes in my health. I also published an online course on CIRS (mold illness), but my main work focus was telehealth with clients. Around that time, I came down with symptoms that tested positive for covid, but found I bounced back much quicker, and was even able to surf again a week later.

 

In the summer of 2022, 10 months after I took off for Mexico, I went back to the states to see family and tie up some loose ends. I started in Denver and drove to Utah to see some relatives. I had a beautiful several weeks with my sister, her husband and my adorable nieces and nephews up in Alaska. I went back to Utah to see my parents and had some scary moments where my mom had a heart attack and had to be life-flighted away to another hospital. Thankfully she was ok, but it was a stressful time to say the least.

 

I returned to Mexico in July, and the following month headed back to the states for a work conference in Idaho, followed by a road trip to Montana to see family and check out Glacier National Park before returning to Denver. It was definitely a summer of travel; I had a few more trips to see my cousin in Illinois and a work trip to get some mentoring from an hEDS guru Susan Chalela at her practice in South Carolina. Unfortunately, while I was in Charleston a big hurricane hit which meant I had less days in clinic with her, but it was still an incredible opportunity to learn and grow.

 

That fall, I had a month of in-person visits with patients in Colorado before officially deciding to close my doors there. While I was there, my uncle who had been struggling with cancer took a downward turn, so I flew to Vermont to be with family and was able to be there at his side as he passed. It was an intense process that really impacted me profoundly. Around the same time, a close friend was dealing with some trauma of her own and it was really impacting me as well.

 

While I was on one of my flights to Vermont, I got a voicemail from a police officer that my storage unit in Colorado had been broken into and robbed. It seemed like an inside job, because I had been in and out the two weeks prior getting ready to move out. In the end, I saw it as another sign from the universe to release any attachment to things and to embrace a more minimalistic lifestyle.

 

I donated most of the remaining things from my storage unit and fit what I could into my car and drove down to see my parents in Arizona. After some time with them, I returned to Mexico and discovered that there had been a water leak in my bathroom while I was away, and everything—I mean everything—was moldy. The doors, the walls, the bed, my clothing and belongings, even the kitchen items were covered. Even though this building was only a few years old, I knew that living in a place with such high humidity there was risk, and being a ground level apartment with poor air flow, I should have taken more precautions. Still, it felt like a pretty significant setback as I had to walk away and look for new housing (and belongings), while having some pretty significant neurological (and other) symptoms.

 

I was frustrated that mold could still impact me that way, especially after all of the work I had done. How had I stayed in a historic 1800’s building with black mold everywhere mere months prior, but could not even handle ten minutes in my apartment? I concluded that some of it was limbic, since I was also under quite a bit more stress with the events of the months prior.

 

And, a few days after my arrival to find the mold, a large category 4 hurricane had a direct hit to my town. I was holed up in an Airbnb and that night the winds were howling, rain was pouring in through the boarded-up windows, and a large sheet of metal the size of a vehicle flew through the air and got impaled on a pole right outside of my door. It was my first major hurricane and it definitely was scary, but luckily, I had a friend who came over and weathered it out with me. Thankfully, while some roads were washed away and we had downed powerlines and damaged homes, everyone survived and once the power came back on it was basically back to life as we knew it. Luckily, I was able to find an apartment that was an even better fit in terms of my health and my needs.

 

Year 2 in Mexico

 

As I settled into the new place and back into life in Mexico, I felt so at peace with my decision to relocate and settle in Mexico long-term. I had such a strong inner-knowing about it, and my second year in Mexico turned out to be equally beautiful and life-giving. There is definitely a transient nature to this surfing community, similar to that of a ski town, plus all of the snowbirds who have part-time places in this area. However, I’ve found that the friends I’ve made here have been more like-minded than ever. It can be exhausting to feel like a revolving door to part-time residents and visitors alike, but it’s also a lot of fun. The biggest challenge is most certainly the dating pool because of those very factors.

 

I resumed some work on detoxing from mold and based on my self-assessment, also decided that it was time to do some work on parasites. At that point, I wasn’t having many symptoms. However, one puzzling thing that had happened was that every time I did a therapy with prolonged exposure to high heat (like a Temazcal ceremony), I’d end up with fevers and herx symptoms for months afterward. I was noticing some skin issues (inflammation from jellyfish and sea lice stings, an intermittent rash, and poorly healing insect bites on my legs). I also noticed some visual issues particularly after lots of screen time/telehealth, and a wheeze or cough that would happen with exposure to chemicals or cooking fumes. I’d also had some more intense period symptoms during some months of the past year and wanted to heal root issues around that as well.

 

On the plus side, my energy and mental clarity felt great, my GI system felt great (even with 11pm dinners some nights and lots of tacos!), and I was able to tolerate surfing for 2-6 hours a day, plus bike rides, dancing, strength training, and lots of walking. My mental health was the best it’s ever been—that chemical feeling of anxiety was now a thing of the past. My sleep issues, sensory sensitivities and head and neck concerns were also non-issues. The abdominal swells that had previously been labeled as HAE attacks occurred 6-7 times a year, in a much milder form, and interestingly they tended to happen when I was traveling outside of Mexico and responded almost immediately to TUDCA, a supplement that helps with bile flow. Coupled with the observation that either toxin exposure or caffeine seemed to be the triggers, that made sense.

 

So, as I prepared to do parasite work, my biggest concerns were skin, hormones and intermittent constipation. The parasite work was slow and painful, and the first few months I had a lot of side effects. I’d spent a lot of time opening up my detox and drainage pathways prior, and was frustrated with the slow pace of this work. The side effects fluctuated and included everything from fatigue and cravings, bloating and constipation, urinary symptoms, OCD feelings, anxiety, skin itching, joint pain, noise sensitivity, facial nerve pain, headaches, dizziness, teeth/gum pain, brain fog, eye inflammation and blurred vision, eczema and face breakouts, insomnia, restlessness, decreased appetite. I had some bizarre things occur that seemed connected to parasites, such as eyelid swelling and inflammation, facial cold sores, and scabs in the nose. I’d been pulling worms out of my nose since I lived in Peru, but this came to an all-time high once I started using herbal parasite treatments.

 

However, after a few rounds of the parasite work, I also started to notice some pretty interesting changes within myself. My hair and nails got healthier and my skin improved. I was able to reverse my allergy to nuts completely and no longer felt reactive to any food (although I have yet to try shellfish). Constipation and hormonal concerns improved. I was able to purge more gallstones.

 

2023: Year of Yes

 

Heading into winter of 2022, I decided that 2023 would be my year of “Yes” and leaning into opportunities. I spent the holidays with family and then returned to the states soon thereafter for a muscle testing work training. January boasted incredible waves and tons of visitors.

 

In November I’d met a gut who invited me on a surf trip with a group of his friends in February, to Barbados, and though I didn’t know him very well, I decided to go for it. A week out he bailed on the trip, but I ended up going anyway and had one of the best experiences of my life with an incredible group of humans from all over the world—who I’ve seen several times since!

 

In March, I met up with a group of guys I’d met the year prior in El Salvador for a surf trip in Costa Rica, and then met my best friend in Guatemala for some volcano summits and lake exploration and surfing. I had some more visitors in Mexico before flying to surprise my mom for Mother’s Day. I was stacking my patient schedule in order to be able to do all of this travel (or working from the road), so it was an intense time, and a really fun time. We did some weekend trips around Mexico that summer and then I was off to Alaska for my annual visit to see family.

 

As I turned 40 that August, I stepped back and marveled at where I found myself, on the path that’s led me here, the lessons learned, and the joy in little everyday moments. I’d recently completed a certification called Mind Body Spirit Release (MBSR^TM) and found it profoundly helpful for me personally as well as in my patient care. On a separate note, I grew more curious about my psychic gifts and began to develop them more. I was also feeling more ready for a romantic relationship again and was exploring that possibility.

 

The rest of 2023 was much of the same—working hard, hosting visitors, weekend trips and then bigger trips. I now think I was using travel and adventure as a bit of a distraction, and have learned a lot of lessons from it. I stuck around Mexico for some of the hottest months that year (August, September) before flying to Portugal and Morocco for vacation time and surfing camps. The trips were incredible, and my only negative concern was coming down with “viral” symptoms the three separate times I was in Lisbon, which I later realized was connected to an air quality issue.

 

Today (February 2024)

 

I never imagined that I could feel healthier and more energetic at age 40 than I did in my 20’s. Throughout my travel in the past year, I’ve continued to work on supporting detox with supplements and other modalities, but it wasn’t a front and center full-time effort. I let it flow based on my schedule, my travel, and the surf report (ha). I know that my story is not over and I still believe I have more work to do on things like heavy metals, as well as my circulatory and lymphatic systems. I’m so blessed to continue to experience new levels of health and vitality. I credit some of this latest progress to using Cell Core products—I have yet to find something that seems to be as effective for this root issue work. Today, my main concern, if I need to find one, is the fact that I still have odd reactions to insect bites on my legs.

 

I am amazed at the body’s intelligence and its ability to heal itself. In these last several years, I’ve been intentional about toxin avoidance and relatively clean eating, but it has been far from perfect. I’ve worked on mold and parasites, but in a slow and scattered way. What’s seemed to have a more profound impact on my system is community and culture, commitment to doing more of the inner work, time in nature/the ocean, functional physical movement, energetic boundaries, geography (EMFs and toxins?) and letting things go/surrendering. (I still have many areas of surrendering control that I’m working on—certainly a work in progress!) But this transformation in the past 3 years feels like stark contrast to the person I used to be.

 

I’m Christian and faith in God has always been at my core. My participation in organized religion has varied over the years, but especially in these past few years, making my faith my own and focusing on my personal relationship with my loving Creator has been very powerful for me.

 

So, in summary, I get asked this question all the time:

What made the biggest difference in my healing journey since I wrote “Mast Cells United”?

 

• Working on energetic boundaries and understanding how to thrive as an empath
• Avoidance of toxins from vaccines, mold, chemicals, dietary junk, excessive EMFs etc.
• Addressing mycotoxins and detox/drainage pathways
• Addressing parasites
• Strengthening my shoulders, head and neck in a functional and fun way (and physical activity in general- in the right dosage and intensity)
• Trauma resources and commitment to inner work (mental/emotional/spiritual healing)
• Autonomic nervous system work, sound healing, ceremonies
• Community, connection, and culture
• Mind Body Spirit Release (MBSR^TM) and muscle testing
• Leaning into my inner knowing, my intuitive gifts and embracing the “woo”

 

The takeaway is not that everyone needs to move to Mexico (though I highly recommend it, ha). But who we surround ourselves with matters. What we do everyday matters. The energy around us (whether it comes from other humans, air quality, EMFs, etc.) matters.

 

If you’re curious what types of questions I explored for my inner work, you can find them in my latest publication “Full Circle: Inner Work Journal Questions for Expansive Healing from MCAS.” A compilation of the topics that I wish “younger me” had on the radar, in this resource I explore themes such as vision, identity, mind-body connections, relationships and cultural dynamics, the autonomic nervous system, listening, surrendering, releasing, energetic boundaries, intuition, community, connection, creativity and coming full circle.

Learn more about this resource here:
Full Circle Book

 

And if you want to explore working together, head on over to Origin Wellness to learn more.

 

I hope that by now it’s obvious that I want to impart you with a deep and sincere message of hope. As I’ve been saying for years, healing and full reversal of symptoms is possible. Wherever you find yourself at today in your journey, don’t give up!